


The Tudors, Season 1, Episode 4, His Majesty, The King

by TheSomewhatRamblingReviewer



Category: The Tudors (TV)
Genre: Analysis, Episode Review, Episode: s01e04 His Majesty The King, Meta, Nonfiction, Season/Series 01, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:55:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23318698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSomewhatRamblingReviewer/pseuds/TheSomewhatRamblingReviewer
Summary: Warning: Contains spoilers for the episode and the rest of the series. Complete.





	The Tudors, Season 1, Episode 4, His Majesty, The King

Open to a title-drop as Henry is announced when he enters the court to see Margaret off. Kissing her lips and wishing her a safe journey, he urges her to love the Portuguese king.

Hugging him, she demands he remember his promise to let her marry whom she chooses when said king is dead.

Impatient, he pushes her away to go over to Charles Brandon. “Charles, as you love me, take care of her.”

Charles Brandon promises to treat Margaret as if she was his own sister, and neither Margaret nor I can help but make a noise of disbelief at this statement.

Henry pats Charles Brandon on the arm, and when he lets go of the hold he has on the other arm, Charles Brandon makes a motion as if he were trying to reach out to re-establish contact with Henry.

Did no one stop and think this was a bit of an odd character moment? It’s not overt, and there are certainly interpretations which don’t hold he has less-than-platonic feelings for Henry, but still, I’m left wondering if it was simply a tic of Henry Cavill’s left in, or if someone made the deliberate choice for him to do this.

Henry decides everyone should pray before the journey. Everyone kneels down, and a priest leads the prayer.

Later, More informs Henry how happy the pope is with Henry’s pamphlet. He continues Henry’s been granted the title ‘Defender of the Faith’. Also, Luther responded, too, and his response was unimpressed and insulting.

Having a hissy fit, Henry declares Luther should be burned.

Don’t give the sainted one any ideas about burning people, I beg you.

On the boat, Margaret’s stuff is unpacked, and Charles Brandon says her bed should be suitable. He also explains the panels will be removed in the event of action happening. When she asks what sort of action he’s alluding to, he responds in the event of the ship being attacked.

Like Margaret, I completely believe his explanation. She and I should both go buy this bridge I’ve heard is for sell. I’ve been assured it’s real and does go somewhere.

After some more flirting between the two, he leaves.

At church, Henry and Catherine meet, and his eyes occasionally wander to Anne. Thomas is leading the choirboys, and William is part of Henry’s group. I wonder if this is when he first noticed Thomas.

Later, a man comes in. “Your Majesty, Lady Anne-” Henry immediately jumps up. “Clifford.” Heh.

Setting a package with a letter on top of it down, the woman leaves.

Opening the package, he finds the jewels he was shown last episode.

Anne’s voice narrates the letter, and there’s a shot of her looking bored in a carriage. The letter is full of self-deprecation and praise for Henry. It ends with her informing him she’s returning to Hever.

In the Tower of London, a guard announces Pace is free to leave. However, Pace has had a complete mental breakdown. He makes it clear he believes his deceased wife is with him. “Do you not see her?”

Not sure how to handle this but not a cruel man, the guard answers, “Yes, Mr Pace. I see her.”

Pace is never seen again. I have to wonder if the guard coaxed him out or if he quickly and painlessly killed him in the belief doing so was an act of mercy.

Elsewhere, Cromwell makes his first appearance with Wolsey noting he’s been observing Cromwell’s hard work, diligence, and discretion. Then, he brings up the fact Cromwell is of obscure stock. Keeping his eyes down, Cromwell doesn’t answer, but Wolsey continues he is, too. “It should not be held against you.”

Wolsey declares he may have a proposition for him.

James Frain garnered great praise for his acting on the show, and I do think he deserves it. However, this episode isn’t much an example of his skill. When he says, “Thank you, your imminence,” he sounds just like Forney from Where the Heart Is, albeit with his natural accent rather than the American one he put on for the movie.

Later, Wolsey talks to Henry about the alliance with the emperor, the need to raise taxes, and finally, when he realises Henry is simply too distracted to carry on an actual conversation, tells him about a Princess Marguerite.

I don’t know much about Marguerite de Navarre, but back when this first aired, some people were genuinely angry at the show’s treatment of her. In the show, she’s a one-night stand of Henry’s and doesn’t have a defined personality. In real life, she was an intellectual, and among other things, she influenced Anne Boleyn’s religious views.

It’s agreed Wolsey will arrange some private time between the two, and he asks for permission to appoint a new secretary. Giving his consent, Henry leaves.

On the ship, Margaret spies on the card game going on in the other room. One man declares his king has Charles Brandon’s queen, and Charles Brandon responds he was hoping the knave would get the queen.

Or the king would get the knave, I imagine.

He looks over, and there’s an implication he knows Margaret is spying.

At the English court, there’s a feast, and Wolsey introduces Princess Marguerite.

I know nothing of the actress, but if she’s good at her craft, she does nothing to show it during this episode. When I say Marguerite has no personality, I mean it literally. Her dialogue is without inflection, and when she looks at Henry, she’s simply looking at him with seemingly no thought or feeling behind it. Jonathon Rhys Meyers does his flirty, sleazy Henry performance, and he has no one to play off when directing it towards her.

Meanwhile, Boleyn sits down next to Norfolk. He explains how Wolsey is stealing from Henry, and Norfolk wants to tell Henry straight away, but Boleyn suggests they wait until Wolsey isn’t in Henry’s good graces.

More enters.

Perking up, Henry rushes to hug him. Begging More to stay at court, he offers him great chambers. He even offers to give him William’s chambers, and William’s facial expressions and body language to this greatly amused me.

Politely declining, More declares he prefers to stay with his family.

Taking this in good grace, Henry wanders off, and coming over, Anthony says, “His Majesty loves you above anyone else, Mr More. You know that.”

Showing he has some idea of how Henry operates, More responds Henry would behead him if it got Henry a castle. Snapping his fingers, he wanders off, and Anthony looks annoyed.

I’m assuming Anthony was annoyed More didn’t acquiesce to Henry’s request due to believing More would have a better chance at making Henry happy while Charles Brandon is away than he and William will.

Henry approaches Wyatt to say he’s heard Wyatt is a poet.

“I write poems,” is Wyatt’s minimising repsonse.

Expressing his admiration of said poems, Henry directly asks, “Where you in love with Anne Boleyn?” It turns out Wolsey told him she and Wyatt were once engaged.

Wyatt denies the engagement, and Henry again asks if Wyatt loved her. Wyatt gives a diplomatic answer of him having an unrequited crush on her, and then, he brings up his wife.

Threateningly, Henry whispers, “Enjoy the feast,” before walking away.

Thomas is sitting by himself working on his music when two sisters come sit down next to him. Complimenting his music, they physically edge closer to him. One of says they share a room, and an invitation for him to come to said room is extended. Not knowing how to politely decline and not willing to be deliberately rude, he uses finishing the song as an excuse not to. They leave.

Coming over, William simply looks at Thomas for a moment before walking away. Thomas’s only reaction is confusion and, perhaps, curiosity.

Over with Henry and Anthony, a laughing William sits down. Henry asks his impression of Marguerite. They all look, and Anthony’s tongue pokes out slightly.

“She’s well-built, your majesty. A little heavy in the top decks for my taste, though,” William answers.

Later, Henry and Marguerite are behind closed doors, and unable to stand the awkward quietly, the two guards in the hallway roll their eyes and mock what’s happening.

On the ship, Margaret does some more spying as Charles Brandon strips off his shirt before laying down. He lies close to the spyhole, and quickly leaning away, she puts her hand over it.

At the English court, a messenger delivers the news the emperor has gained a great victory against the French. The French king has also been captured. Hearing this, Henry warmly welcomes the messenger with an invitation to eat. He declares there needs to be a celebration.

There’s a transition to a jousting tournament. Anthony wins a point, and William congratulates him.

Henry enters, and Catherine ties her favour around his lance.

Wolsey is sitting with More. He observes Catherine is popular with the people, and More points out her popularity is well-earned. He comments Wolsey seems out of sorts.

In response, Wolsey snaps he has reasons to be upset but, “They needn’t bother you.”

More gives his views on pain and spirituality. They’re interesting, but like most of his views, I disagree. He realises he might have unfavourably compared Wolsey to someone, quickly says he wasn’t doing so, and wisely shuts up when Wolsey glares.

As Henry and William joust, Catherine discreetly slips a letter to the messenger. Ordering him to give it to the emperor, she urges him not tell anyone about it or let them see it.

At the Boleyn home, Anne reads a letter from Henry to George.

I feel sorry for the historical George Boleyn due to how he’s written here. There’s no way to know if the historical George Boleyn was a rapist or not, but with not one person even hinting such a thing in their writings, it’s a great dishonour to him to present him as such.

It’s revealed Henry wants to meet Anne in private, and Anne shows off a cross necklace he sent.

Back at the tourney, William is a goof-off who lugs around an extremely large, fat lance.

Boleyn and Norfolk discuss bringing Anne back to court soon.

Next, Anthony and Henry are to joust, and Henry forgets to lower his visor. Realising this, Boleyn alerts Norfolk, and people nearby try to halt the match. Henry’s hit on the face, and he starts to fall, but he’s caught and lowered to the ground.

Adrenaline rushing, Henry happily jumps up but quickly stumbles. Anthony begs forgiveness, and Henry reasonably points out it wasn’t Anthony’s fault. Then, he babbles about it being all his fault, and it’s obvious he’s thinking about his lack of a legitimate male heir rather than the accident. He says he’s not hurt, can’t be hurt, and insists on having another match.

Catherine begs him not to, but gently assuring her he’s okay, he’s firm in his insistence he’ll ride again.

Catherine crosses herself in the stands, and Henry knocks Anthony off the horse.

In the ship, Margaret is playing cards, and her ladies are doing needlework. Charles Brandon comes in, and she asks how long they have until they reach their destination. He answers about two days, and she challenges him to a game of cards. He teases her about her upcoming wedding, and she orders him not to. He bluntly asks how she’ll feel about an old man trying to make love to her. The banter continues until she orders her ladies to leave.

There’s some more banter. Eventually, it leads to them having rough, clothed sex.

At court, giving Henry an update on the emperor, Wolsey introduces Cromwell. Spotting Anne, Henry dismissively greets Cromwell before going over to her. He’s happy to see she’s wearing the necklace he sent.

Next, after greeting Mary, he and Catherine walk off together. She wants Wolsey to stop opening her letters, and he agrees to put a stop to it. They sit down, and Henry comforts her by assuring her, though zealous, everything Wolsey does in their interests.

He sees George and Anne, and not knowing George is Anne’s brother, he projects, “Unless you have secrets.”

Anthony is announced, and Henry gets up to look at the damage he unintentionally did. He observes Anthony almost lost an eye, and Anthony jokes he never used it much anyways. Henry proceeds to make Anthony a knight, and they hug one another.

Next, William is made a knight.

In a secret meeting, Cromwell listens to a man preaching Luther’s doctrine.

The next scene has strong parallels to Henry’s dream when he meets Anne alone. In an uncomfortable move, he grabs her neck. He asks about the man she was with earlier. “My brother, George,” she answers.

He kisses her. When they hear laughter, Anne rushes away, and William and Anthony appear. William asks who the woman was.

“Just a girl,” Henry answers.

On the boat, Margaret looks out at land. Coming in, Charles Brandon makes a comment about her new kingdom.

“Don’t. I should hate you,” she says.

“But you don’t,” he heavily states. “I know you don’t.”

Henry might, though.

“What will I do,” she wonders aloud.

In the castle, the court is forbidding, and the king is a lecherous, frail man. He babbles to her in his language whilst examining her as if she were a horse.

She faints, and Charles Brandon catches her.

At the English court, Henry and Catherine sit together. She’s quietly concerned, but when he perks up, she’s happy until she realises belle-of-the-ball Anne is the cause. Even then, she tries to be happy.

In Portugal, a near tears Margaret walks down the aisle. When it seems she’s going to bolt, Charles Brandon puts a firm hand on hers.

She asks, “What are you doing?”

“What the king ordered,” he resolutely answers.

I’ve written a lot about Charles Brandon, but I have to give credit to Gabrielle Anwar here. She does convey the unjustness of what’s being done to Margaret, and until later in the episode, she does successfully make the character sympathetic. Even then, it’s not her acting that causes me to lose most sympathy for the character.

There’s a difference between an arranged marriage and a forced one, and this falls under the category of the latter. There’s nothing unreasonable in her desire to choose when and whom she marries, and Henry’s choice for her being such a poor one only highlights this.

The bride and groom kneel, and Charles Brandon blinks several times. Aside from feeling sorry for her, he probably feels some sense of empathy.

In England, Henry’s writing a love letter to Anne. He asks to meet again.

At Hever, Boleyn happily encourages Anne.

To keep it short, the next scene involves a room full of people standing around as Margaret and the Portuguese king are having sex.

Over in England, Henry and the others are horseback riding, and they come across a large, water-filled ditch. William makes the reasonable point they need to go around it, but Henry decides he can and will jump it.

Still bearing the bruises and the guilt from their jousting matching, Anthony is not happy. William, however, is content to laugh silently at his friend’s stupidity. Both friends openly laugh when Henry falls into the water, but a sharp-eyed page realises Henry is drowning and saves him.

Later, a physician is called for Henry.

At the Portuguese court, Charles Brandon asks permission to dance with Margaret. Permission granted, they dance. It’s revealed Charles Brandon is leaving tomorrow, and as usual, he revels in her misfortune. She suggests he loves her, and his expression is ambiguous.

Back in Henry’s bedchambers, he lies zoned out. Behind him, doctors and priests talk. They come over to ask permission to bleed him, and he eventually becomes responsive enough to give his consent.

There’s a shot of Margaret looking out at the ship.

Elsewhere, Henry has a freak-out to Wolsey about almost dying, and this would mean more if Henry didn’t have hissy fits over every little thing. Almost dying is a big thing, and most people would have an intense reaction to it. It’s just, when a person or character has intense reactions to nearly everything, their response to almost dying doesn’t hold as much weight to other people or viewers.

Some of what he says does resonate such as how he’s being uncaring of the future and his worry about not having much of a legacy. However, his conclusion is God is refusing to give him a son due to marrying his brother’s widow. Demanding a divorce, he charges Wolsey with getting one for him.

Well, for once, Margaret is the more extreme of the siblings. Whereas, Henry is, despite the emotional hurt it causes his wife, not unreasonably trying to legally extract himself from an unwanted relationship, Margaret takes the much more efficient but utterly horrific action of smothering her husband.

I’m sympathetic to the fact she’s unhappy and feels trapped, but she likely could have found a way to extract herself. She doesn’t even try, however; she simply kills him in cold-blood. This is where my sympathy ends.

Fin.


End file.
